The internal combustion engine (ICE) is a self-contained powerplant in which a vapor consisting of a fossil fuel (gasoline or diesel) and oxygen is ignited in a sealed combustion chamber. The ICE has revolutionized society, leading the unprecedented industrialization of the western world in the 20th century. Now, ICEs are ubiquitous, being the favored power source for automobiles, light trucks, and heavy trucks.
Between now and the year 2020, it is estimated that the total worldwide car parc (total registered light vehicles) will grow from approximately 620 million units to almost 1 billion units. During that same time, the annual worldwide new vehicles sales will grow from approximately 80 million to 115 million units per year. This explosion in vehicle ownership will be driven by increased vehicle ownership in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), primarily by growth in Brazil and China.
While the number of operating vehicles, worldwide, is going to increase rapidly, the supply of gasoline and diesel are going to remain constant or decrease. The International Energy Agency states that 2006 was the peak year of petroleum production. The global output of petroleum will now slowly decline. Therefore, the increased consumption of fossil fuels by the BRIC countries will continue to drive the demand for petroleum upwards. This has already led to volatility in the oil markets, with the cost of a barrel of oil peaking at $140 in 2008. Since then, the price for crude oil has varied from a low of $70 per barrel to a high of $110 per barrel. All indicators are that the price of petroleum will steadily increase, faster than other goods, until it is exhausted.
The combustion of fossil fuels, within an ICE, has many additional drawbacks, other than just the price of filling the gas tank. Foremost among these drawbacks is pollution. The pollution caused by ICE fossil fuel combustion is significant contributor to the problem of global climate change. Additionally, gasoline and diesel are volatile organic compounds (“VOCs”), which readily evaporate under all ambient conditions. The propensity for gasoline to evaporate is temperature-dependent. The combustion of fossil fuels leads to particulate pollution and the evaporation of gasoline leads to smog. At a local level, the pollution from fossil fuels makes the air in many major cities, such as Mexico City, Beijing, and Los Angeles, unhealthy to breathe for many people.
Due to global climate change concerns, and concerns regarding the availability and price of petroleum products, the United States has adopted a Corporate Average Fuel Economy (“CAFE”) standard that goes from 27.3 m.p.g. in 2010 to a proposed minimum of 46 m.p.g., in the year 2025. Additionally, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) has a number of regulations aimed at reducing pollution from cars and trucks. Among these regulations are restrictions on the escape of evaporated gasoline or diesel both while fueling a vehicle, and while the gasoline or diesel resides in the fuel tank. The automobile industry is now attempting to find additional ways to both improve fuel economy, and reduce overall emissions, including evaporative emissions.
Since the propensity of gasoline and diesel to evaporate with increasing temperature leads to more evaporative emissions in hotter climates and on hotter days, a method or system that could reduce the storage temperature of the fuel in a vehicle would be helpful in meeting the EPA goals for evaporative emissions. All things being equal, reducing evaporative losses boasts fuel efficiency, because less fuel is lost to evaporation. Additionally, as petroleum gets more expensive, reducing evaporative loss will become monetarily efficient.
The existing prior art does not disclose a system focused on cooling the bulk-stored fuel in automobiles and light trucks. U.S. Pat. No. 8,528,774 by named inventor Jorgensen, granted on Sep. 10, 2013, and entitled, “Fuel cooler assembly” (“Jorgensen '774”), teaches a heavy truck diesel tank with an outer and inner shell, intended to cool the fuel returned from the engine. Jorgensen '774 teaches a passive fuel cooler in which the temperature coefficient of the outer shell is higher than the temperature coefficient of the inner shell. The fuel cooler relies on the return fuel being cooled by convection from the air on the outside of the outer shell and by conduction from the inner shell. Jorgensen '774 does not attempt to cool the entire bulk of the fuel, only the return fuel from the engine. Jorgensen '774 is representative of the art in both passively and actively cooling the fuel returned from the engine.
US Patent Application 20130174815 by named inventor Cleary, published on Jul. 11, 2013, entitled, “Method for improving engine performance using a temperature managed fuel system” (“Cleary '815”), teaches temperature control system for the fuel delivery system on a vehicle. Cleary '815 discloses a system that can use, in alternative embodiments, the radiator coolant, intercooler fluid, or exhaust gas to heat the fuel, and can use the intercooler fluid to cool the fuel. However, Cleary '815 does not cool the stored gasoline (i.e., the fuel tank), only the gasoline in the distribution system. The apparent aim of Cleary '815 is not to reduce evaporative emissions, or to reduce the overall loss of evaporated fuel. Rather, Cleary '815 is concerned with insuring that the fuel is at the optimum temperature for combustion. Cleary '815 is representative of the art that seeks to heat or cool the fuel in the fuel distribution system, including heating or cooling carried out at the fuel pump and fuel injectors.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,642,219, by named inventor Ishikawa, entitled, “Cooling system and method of a fuel cell” (“Ishikawa '219”) teaches a fuel cell cooling system that uses multiple heat exchangers, and a pump, to circulate radiator coolant to cool the fuel cells. Ishikawa '219 discloses that the fuel cell uses a fuel, but is silent on the storage system of the fuel. Ishikawa '219 is focused solely on cooling the fuel cell stack, itself. Ishikawa '219 is representative of the art that teaches cooling of fuel cell.
US Patent Application 20130206115 by named inventor Kragh, published on Aug. 15, 2013, entitled, “Methods and systems for fuel vapor control” (“Kragh '115”), teaches vapor control system for the fuel storage system of a vehicle with an internal combustion engine. Kragh '115 discloses a vapor cooler to reduce the vapor pressure within the fuel storage tank. The vapor cooler is located interior to the fuel storage tank, in the vapor space. The vapor cooler condenses vapor and routes the condensed vapor to the fuel pump or fuel line. The vapor cooler does not cool the bulk fuel. The vapor cooler does not significantly affect the storage temperature within the tank. Additionally, to whatever extent that the vapor condenser's exterior is significantly different than the interior condition of the fuel tank, the vapor condenser may lead to water condensing from the air, fouling the fuel.